The Ringelmann Effect

Ringelmann effect is the theory that states: as the size of the group increases, the members of the group will each become less productive. This theory was brought up by Max Ringelmann who was a French agricultural engineer. In his experiment, he asked people to pull on a rope individually. Then, he asked those people to pull the rope with a group. He realised that when people were pulling with a group they wore putting in less effort
The Ringelmann effect is also called “social loafing” and is quite common in many offices nowadays. Ringelmann thought there were two reasons for the result of the experiment. First, was that as more people started pulling on the rope, the coordination would decrease. This does not just apply to the case of the rope, but our professional relationships as well. When we are doing a team project, we find it easier to do it with less people, mainly because planning will be faster. Distributing the work is easier in smaller groups and also less disagreements will arise. Sometimes when we are working with a group of people we find it hard to respect their wishes or to find common ground. As more people are added, many different perspectives enter into the equation and this makes communication more challenging. This is a significant cause for unproductivity in teamwork.
Of course, there is an old saying that says “If we don’t all row, the boat won’t go.” This proverb states the ideal for teamwork. All of the team members should be in harmony and working in coordination. However, this is not the case for most teams. We are humans with emotions, opinions and diverse personalities. Most of the time personal problems between members which causes the productivity to decrease.
Ringelmann also had another reason for the experiment results, which was decreased motivation. In a group with more people, we may feel much more comfortable because there are other people wo could do the work. Think about it: if you were doing a project by yourself, you would feel more anxious because the only person you can rely on is yourself. In the case of a two-person group, you still feel anxious, but think that your teammate can always jump in to help you. When the team members increase, humans automatically feel relaxed, because even if they do not do their part, others can do it for them. Of course, this logic does not work when everyone thinks this way, but this is the reality why most groupwork fails.
Overall, an increase in the members of a team result in productivity loss. However, we should learn a lesson from Ringelmann’s experiment, and strive to think more collectively and do our part. We should be respectful and participative and try to go by the proverb says.